Monday night’s Last Comic Standing started off on the right foot with Alicia Cooper, who opened with the line “The economy’s so bad, my cousin texted his wedding invitations.” Funny! She needed some work, but I was glad the judges gave her the chance to perform that night. I also enjoyed the second guy, a tough New Yorker named Mike DeStefano who had a hilarious mafia-esque video intro. His bit about his resume as a comic/drug counselor/addict was pretty great.
Then things got bad. One guy showed up nude. There were masks and costumes and stupid props. I really hated the clown. I hate anyone who uses gimmicks to try and be funny. It means they’re not.
Things picked up when we met Kurt Metzger. You can’t go wrong with a joke about Cash 4 Gold. I also thought Tommy Johnagin was funny, as well, and I’ll have my eye on those two guys. The streak ended when Todd Catalano came onstage. Jokes comparing your girlfriend to your dog don’t do it for me, and the fact that he didn’t make a crack about his own severely sunburnt face made me dislike him even more. I was happy he didn’t make it through.
Jamie Lee, the young woman who quit her stable 9-5 job had some good jokes and made it through, though she didn’t seem experienced enough to be a real contender. I liked Roy Wood, Jr. as well. In keeping with my disdain for all that is gimmicky, I hated all the ventriloquist guys. Did you notice that there weren’t any women with dummies? I think that says something.
Time for the showcase! First up was Jamie Lee, and I thought she was funnier than she had been the first time. Mike DeStefano didn’t impress me as much as he had before. I liked Roy Wood Jr.’s bit about social networking and dating – it’s an overdone bit, but he made it fresh. I really loved the guy who did the bit about finding out that Michael Jackson had died during his father’s funeral. I also really liked Jim David. He’d impressed me in his first audition with the bit about gay marriage, and I liked his showcase bit about automated airline booking as well.
Alicia Cooper, who’d been first up in the episode, made me laugh quite a bit with her joke about having to pay for bags when flying. Finally, Jared Logan pleasantly surprised me with a hilarious joke about how pretentious he feels when he says “Pardon me”. He was right, it does make him sound like an arrogant snob. Yet, a funny one.
Among the comics who made it to the end were Roy Wood Jr., Tommy Johnagin, Kurt Metzger, Alicia Cooper, and Jamie Lee. I was excited for them, but I didn’t think Mike DeStefano deserved to make it through instead of someone like Jared Logan.
What did you think of Last Comic Standing? Has it been making you laugh this season? From this episode, I’ve got my eye on Alicia, Kurt and Tommy. But I’m also rooting for Jamie, who seems just so thrilled to even be there.
